8-K

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of The Securities Exchange Act of 1934

July 29, 2021

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported)

HOPE BANCORP INC

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware	000-50245	95-4849715
(State of incorporation)	(Commission File Number)	(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

3200 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 1400

Los Angeles, California 90010

(Address of principal executives offices, including zip code)

(213) 639-1700

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):

☐ Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

☐ Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

☐ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

☐ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Common Stock	,	par value $0.001 per share	HOPE	NASDAQ Global Select Market
(Title of class)			(Trading Symbol)	(Name of exchange on which registered)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).

Emerging growth company ☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensation Arrangements of Certain Officers.

On July 29, 2021, Hope Bancorp, Inc. (the “Company”) appointed Mary E. ("Mimi") Thigpen to the Board of Directors of the Company and its wholly owned subsidiary, Bank of Hope, effective August 1, 2021, to serve until the 2022 annual meeting or until her respective successor is duly elected and qualified.

Ms. Thigpen will serve as a member of the Board Risk Committee and Audit Committee. This appointment increases the membership of the Board of Directors from 10 to 11.

Ms. Thigpen has no direct or indirect interest in any transaction required to be disclosed pursuant to Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K. There is no arrangement or understanding with any person pursuant to which Ms. Thigpen was appointed as a member of the Board. Compensatory arrangements for Ms. Thigpen will be consistent with the previously disclosed standard arrangements for non-employee directors of the Company, as described on page 23 of the Company’s proxy statement for its 2021 Annual Meeting of Stockholders filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 22, 2021, which disclosure is incorporated herein by reference.

A copy of the August 2, 2021 press release announcing the appointment of Ms. Thigpen is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1.

Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits

(d) Exhibits

Exhibit No.	Description of Exhibit
99.1	News release, dated August 2, 2021, announcing the appointment of Mary E. ("Mimi") Thigpen to the Board of Directors
104	Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document)

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

		HOPE BANCORP, INC.
Date: August 2, 2021	By:	/s/ Kevin S. Kim
		Kevin S. Kim
		Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer

EX-99.1

News Release

HOPE BANCORP APPOINTS TECHNOLOGY INTRAPRENEUR MARY (“MIMI”) THIGPEN

TO BOARD OF DIRECTORS

LOS ANGELES - August 2, 2021 - Hope Bancorp, Inc. (the “Company”) (NASDAQ: HOPE), the holding company of Bank of Hope (the “Bank”), today announced the appointment of Mary E. (“Mimi”) Thigpen to the Board of Directors of the Company and Bank effective August 1, 2021. Ms. Thigpen will serve as a member of the Board Risk Committee and Audit Committee. This appointment increases the membership of the Board of Directors from 10 to 11.

Ms. Thigpen, age 61, is an innovative strategic business executive and consultant with more than 38 years’ experience in the technology and communication industries, including cybersecurity and data management strategies. Most recently, she served as Chief Executive Officer of OpsDataStore, Inc., a real-time analytic and artificial intelligence platform for IT Operations, and North Plains, Inc., a digital asset management software company. Earlier in her career, Ms. Thigpen served as Senior Vice President of Strategy and Innovation for Cox Communications, Inc., Managing Director of BearingPoint, Inc., and Partner for Arthur Andersen Business Consulting. She began her career with the Hewlett-Packard Company, where she led multiple global sales, marketing, and product teams. Recognized for her comprehensive experience spanning strategic planning, operations, product innovation and enterprise risk management, Ms. Thigpen has served in numerous board advisory roles. Currently, she serves on the Board of Directors of Globe Life (NYSE: GL), a holding company specializing in life and supplemental health insurance for “middle income” Americans, and privately held provider of cloud-based enterprise software for planning and execution, AchieveIt. Previously, Ms. Thigpen served on the Board of Directors of Opus Bank, until it was acquired by Pacific Premier Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ: PPBI) in June 2020. She is an active member of the Atlanta community through numerous professional and civic organizations and as a volunteer board advisor for honorCode and MBL’s Haiti Initiative. Ms. Thigpen earned her B.S. degree in Mathematical Sciences at Clemson University.

“We are very excited to welcome Mimi to our Board of Directors,” said Kevin S. Kim, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Hope Bancorp, Inc. “In addition to enhancing the overall diversity of our Board, Mimi’s technology and cybersecurity knowledge and experience augment our Board’s oversight ability. She is a recognized intrapreneur with a proven track record of creating long-term value and innovative advantage through new technologies that align with an organization’s strategy and culture. I look forward to her active collaboration and valued contributions.”

About Hope Bancorp, Inc.

Hope Bancorp, Inc. is the holding company of Bank of Hope, the first and only super regional Korean-American bank in the United States with $17.47 billion in total assets as of June 30, 2021. Headquartered in Los Angeles and serving a multi-ethnic population of customers across the nation, Bank of Hope operates 53 full-service branches in California, Washington, Texas, Illinois, New York, New Jersey, Virginia and Alabama. The Bank also operates SBA loan production offices in Seattle, Denver, Dallas, Atlanta, Portland, Oregon, New York City, Northern California and Houston; commercial loan production offices in Northern California and Seattle; residential mortgage loan production offices in Southern California; and a representative office in Seoul, Korea. Bank of Hope specializes in core business banking products for small and medium-sized businesses, with an emphasis in commercial real estate and commercial lending, SBA lending and international trade financing. Bank of Hope is a California-chartered bank, and its deposits are insured by the FDIC to the extent provided by law. Bank of Hope is an Equal Opportunity Lender. For additional information, please go to bankofhope.com. By including the foregoing website address link, the Company does not intend to and shall not be deemed to incorporate by reference any material contained or accessible therein.

(more)

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Contacts:

Alex Ko Senior EVP & Chief Financial Officer 213-427-6560 alex.ko@bankofhope.com Angie Yang SVP, Director of Investor Relations & Corporate Communications 213-251-2219 angie.yang@bankofhope.com

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XML

Document And entity Information	Jul. 29, 2021
Cover [Abstract]
Document Type	8-K
Document Period End Date	Jul. 29, 2021
Entity Registrant Name	HOPE BANCORP INC
Entity Incorporation, State or Country Code	DE
Entity File Number	000-50245
Entity Tax Identification Number	95-4849715
Entity Address, Address Line One	3200 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 1400
Entity Address, City or Town	Los Angeles
Entity Address, State or Province	CA
Entity Address, Postal Zip Code	90010
City Area Code	213
Local Phone Number	639-1700
Written Communications	false
Soliciting Material	false
Pre-commencement Tender Offer	false
Pre-commencement Issuer Tender Offer	false
Title of 12(b) Security	Common Stock
Trading Symbol	HOPE
Security Exchange Name	NASDAQ
Entity Emerging Growth Company	false
Entity Central Index Key	0001128361
Amendment Flag	false